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What's the problem?
The Earth is an interconnected system; rising temperatures and climate change affect all of the Earths ecosystems. Find out how climate change is affecting some of the Earth's major habitats as well as UK based problems:
Tropical forests
© ZSL - Noelle KumpelAround half of all animal species on Earth live in tropical forests. All of those are threatened by climate change. If the Amazon rainforest is affected, as many scientists believe it could be, thousands of animals like those pictured here would be in big trouble.
The world’s largest forest, the Amazon rainforest, depends on its rain. The climate model below shows that because of the massive river systems and delicate balance involved, a change in rainfall here could quickly begin turning the forest to desert. Even where the rainforest does not disappear completely, many species will face hard times as water, food and space become scarce. There is still time to stop this happening; reducing world-wide carbon dioxide emissions is the first step
Oceans
© DSThe oceans, covering almost 70% of our planet’s surface are central to our climate balance and at massive risk from climate change. One risk is to tropical coral reefs which house a quarter of all ocean life. Reef systems are built up of rock-like structures made by animals called polyps, which only survive with just the right levels of sunlight, temperature, depth and acidity. Worryingly, we’re heading towards deeper, warmer and more acidic oceans. Climate change will also hit the UK’s ocean wildlife hard, with native species like the puffin already beginning to feel the pinch.
If temperatures get too high the coral polyps perish, leaving ghostly white skeletons in a process called ‘coral bleaching’. Huge areas of reef can be destroyed in just months, having a lasting effect. Even setting aside the loss of the living reef as a food source for the ocean food chain, without reefs to protect them, coastal areas full of villages, cities and ports, would feel the full force of oceanic storms. Find out more about the effects of climate change in the UK
Moving Mountains
© ZSLEver noticed the caps of snow that stay on high mountains all year round? As well as this ‘snow-line’ some mountains have a ‘tree-line’ above which trees don’t grow. These are the extremes of habitats, and climate change will play havoc with these narrow bands of life, shrinking them and forcing them higher. If the speed of climate change is quicker than a species’ ability to adjust to life higher up the mountain, that species will perish.
Mountain habitats have given the world its first example of an extinction brought about by recent climate change. The golden toad of Costa Rica lost its essential living conditions and hasn’t been seen since 1989. Amphibians like this toad are sensitive to changing levels of mist or temperature, so their plight is an early sign of the danger mountain habitats face.
Drylands
© Tim WacherDrylands are enormous, delicate systems, home to many habitats such as grasslands and deserts. If climate change causes these habitats to die out and grow somewhere else, animals living in those environments would have to move rapidly over many, many miles – or face extinction. As models also predict that drylands would face increasing drought, encouraging fires, storms and sandstorms, adapting to change will be even tougher.
Some incredibly rare animals like the Asiatic lion and Bactrian camel depend on drylands for survival – and so do about a third of the human population. If everything is forced to move, conflict and competition is sure to result, no-one wants to share their home with a lion, given the choice! As well as tackling climate change head on we need to identify new conservation areas which support vulnerable species.
In the UK
© Daniel SprawsonThe UK already experiences one of the most variable climates in the world, making us especially vulnerable to climate change.
An increase in winter rainfall (with associated flooding risks) and a decrease in summer rainfall is already being witnessed. This trend is expected to continue along with increased occurrences of extreme summer temperatures creating serious drought conditions.
The predicted sea level rises in our region are more severe than the average sea level rise, especially in the Thames Estuary and southern North Sea. Find out more about the effects of climate change in the UK
